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there have been lots of threads on this topic and it usually comes down to those who like tham and those who hate them.... never seems to be anyone in the middle... I hated the ones I tried on my '78... I like the way my harley shifts

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I have the hee/toe shifter and it's ok. I think if I could find an original shifter for it I would go back to it. The heel/toe shifter was on my bike when I got it. Big heeled boots tend to get in the way some times.

Leolarry, in my estimation it really depends on the bike, shifter angle, type of floor board or foot peg, how your foot fits the toe only shifter...

I have a heel/toe shifter on some of my Harley's & just love that set up on those bikes withthe flat foot boards& a heel angle that will work good with a heel shifter.. Now on my GoldWing, Inever could get the correct angle with a foot peg & had to remove the foot boards as I couldn't keep from dragging them in the corners..

About all you can do is try a heel/toe shifter & see if it fits your needs.

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Twisty I dont have floor boards on my wing and wasnt planing on putting them on , it is just somtimes i have a hard time finding the the shift lever and with certian boots it is hard to fit under the engine heads . so that is why i was wondering if the heel/toe shifter would work , and also was wondering how it would work with the original foot pegs.. thanks for your input .. Larry

Premium Member

I wouldn't use a heel-toe shifter without floorboards. I've never tried it, but I would imagine that you would have to rest your heel and ball of your foot on the shifter without the floorboards. I wouldn't go for that; that might cause accidental shifting.

Postpubescent member

There wasn't a problem with the set up, you could easily stay off the shifter and on the pegs. Just had to move your toe or heel to make a shift, no necessity of keeping your foot on the shifter. I sold it to someone on eBay, since I really don't like anything but a toe shift anyway.

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On my old 1986 GL1200A, it came with floorboards and heel toe shifter. I liked it on that bike and after purchasing my 96 GL1500I, almost bought some to put on it but decided not to. My feet do not hurt nearly as bad when the floorboards where on the old bike. If you have large feet, you might want to stay away from them. While a person can put more of their feet on the floorboard, it is so flat it may hurt your shins and well as feet. Harley makes their bikes with floorboards and heel toe shifter much better than any Goldwing. It comes from the design of their engine.

Fatalattraction stated that if he could find the original shifter he would go back to it. From what is remembered, all you have to do is remove your floorboards and heel toe shifter and put regular pegs back on your bike. You might have to get shorter bolts to replace the ones holding your floorboards on now. At least the kind that was on mine just had a fork in it that slipped over the original shifter. Like the rest of the replies state, no one is down the middle on this.

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When I first got my bike I had a markland h/t shifter and did not like it. Kept the floorboards. Then bought a 82 for parts with the h/t shifter by honda [ has original emblem on the floor boards]. Put that on my 81 and it works great.

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I installed a set on my 85 Aspy that came off an SEI or LTD. At first it was a little wierd shifting but I found my toes and the top of my foot are'nt sore anymore. The old shifter used to hurt the top ofmy foot after a while. This setup also came with the heel/toe brake as well. Only thing with that, is your foot is never hovering over the rear brake anymore and you need to lift your foot up off the floorboardto depress the rearbrake.

There are a few manufacturers still making these and I believe any other than the factory honda type, mount kind of lower, that is why they might drag in corners. Mine are mounted fairly high and so far have never scraped. Mind you I don't think many goldwing riders actually lean that aggressive for that to happen. At least I don't. Its also nice to havea set of highway pegs or boards to change your leg position every once in a while. A little stretchof the legs once in a while keeps my blood flowing and my butt from falling asleep. The aftermarket floorboards may suit a rider with longer legs.

As far as "Harley makes their bikes with floorboards and heel toe shifter much better than any Goldwing. It comes from the design of their engine." I don't see how the design of a harley engine has any bearing on how a floorboard is made. They all work on the same principal, some just a little different than others. There are some pretty nice floorboards out there for the 1500's and 1800's and they sure carry a hefty pricetag.

I don't regret installing mine. I drive pretty conservitavelyand if needed can shift through the gears pretty quick. If you drive more aggressive they might not be for you, as you have to move your feet off the boards more often to shift and brake.

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The comments about the design of the engine on Harleys came from my observation of the locations of the floorboards and they way they were easier to shift. The V twin on any motorcycle allows the floorboard and heel toe shifter to be mounted more forward. The Goldwing engine being as bulky as it is makes it harder to mount one except in the flat position and harder to shift. That what I find that is uncomfortable for me. Due to my height and age, it is hard for me to find a real comfortable riding position on a Goldwing. I love my bike and more than likely will own nothing but a Goldwing. Both my prior bikes had heel toe shifters on them, but they were 4 cylinders and a little more room. It was hard at the beginning to learn to ride that way. It seemed that my shifting was at first the opposite the way it should be but that went away fast.

Premium Member

I think that some of the reasons for the discussion may be that not all HT shifters are designed the same way ./forums/images/emoticons/emoticonsxtra/grinner.gif.. My Markland HT and boards were designed for the 1200... boards are nice and flat ... and wide... and the "brake" side has a peg for the heel, which puts your feet at the same height on both sides... I love mine, and rarely scrape the boards.. (they flip up quite a ways) The Markland setup gives me three places to rest my feet : Both at same height on the HT, and on the brake-heel peg....... #2 on the boards , if at cruising speed... and #3... on the highway pegs for that laid back cruisin' feeling .... I am sure I would NOT like them ,if the boards were narrower, if the boards did NOT flip up... If there was NOT a brake "heel" post .... Sign me "for them !! " SilverDave /forums/images/emoticons/emoticonsxtra/cooldj.gif